Adam Gnade’s (say it “guh-nah-dee”) describes his work as “a series of books and records that share characters and themes”, in which fiction and song mingle in an attempt “to compile a vast, detailed, interconnected, personal history of contemporary American life.” Solid theory, no? What this looks like in practice is equally as exciting.

First there’s “The Darkness to the West”, Gnade’s 42-page novella zine which you can scope out at our favorite zine distro, Microcosm. Then there’s “Hymn California”, a full-length novel that wound up a bestseller at Powell’s Books. Gnade also records cassettes on a 4-rack machine and has a CD called “The Wild Homesick”, which he calls a “strange, warm, troubled summer record full of doom and affirmations.” So much good work emanating from one soul is always an inspiration.